Smart TRV’s: Do you need them?

Smart Thermostatic Radiator Valves can result in significant savings on your heating bills, and they are a great alternative to smart thermostats if you want to have room-by-room temperature control.

Is there a difference between smart TRVs and TRVs?

The function of TRVs and smart TRVs are the same, however smart TRVs have their own separate advantages. 

Smart TRVS allow you to:

• Control the temperature of your room through an app
• Create heating schedules from them through the app
• Use energy saving features, such as open window detection, to help you waste less energy

How do smart radiator valves work?

Smart TRVs work by measuring a room’s temperature through integrated temperature sensors. They control the flow of hot water into a radiator, meaning that once the room has reached the desired temperature, the flow of hot water will be cut. 

Unlike normal TRVs, smart TRVs have their own temperature setting which you can adjust from your phone. This means you can choose the exact temperature for the different rooms in your home, whether you’re in or not.

The pros and cons of smart TRVs

Saves money 

Smart TRVs can save you money because they allow you to control your house’s temperature room by room. If you have a room which isn’t particularly used that often, such as a guest room, you can install a smart TRV specifically in that room so the radiator comes on less. 

While you can do this with a regular TRV, smart TRVs allow you to change the heat settings in rooms, like a guest room, whenever and wherever you are thanks to the use of apps. 

They can be integrated with smart thermostats 

Combining smart thermostats with smart TRVs is when your heating system can really be used to its full potential. Smart thermostats can recognise your schedules and routines, and can be used in conjunction with smart TRVs for a fully customisable heating system.

This way, your thermostat could learn that people spend time in certain rooms during the morning and other rooms during the evening, and so adjust the heating times accordingly.

Higher upfront costs 

Due to the higher tech nature of smart TRVs, they generally come with a higher upfront cost than regular TRVs. 

However, despite saying this, the savings you can make in the long run will likely make up for the initial purchase costs. 

They need a power source 

While this is only a minor con, smart TRVs do need a power source to operate. Usually they only require a few batteries, however, they do add to the list of household items that need to have their batteries replaced. 

Be mindful to keep on top of replacing the batteries, as they will turn into regular non-smart valves as soon as the batteries die. 

Do you need to have smart TRVs?

While you don’t specifically need to have smart TRVs, they do generally give you much more customisation around your home’s heating than regular TRVs. 

You can do quite a similar job with regular TRVs, except you will need to manually and separately change the desired threshold point in each room. 

If you are looking for a way to easily change your heating thresholds throughout different rooms, have a heating system that matches your routines and one which you can control from anywhere, then smart TRVs will likely be a worthwhile investment for you.

Do smart thermostatic radiator valves save money?

Yes, in fact, smart TRVs can save you up to 30% on your heating bills by not heating in spaces which aren’t in use, or in frequent use. 

Since you can choose the specific temperatures of each room, you can easily choose which rooms have lower temperatures to reach. This can save you a significant amount on your heating bills as you won’t be heating empty rooms that don’t need it.